A Lilac Rolla (Ire)

County Tipperary trainer Paddy Twomey is unlikely to be represented in the G1 Qipco 1,000 Guineas at Newmarket, having stated his intention to wait for the Irish equivalent--run at the Curragh on Sunday, May 26--before stepping up to the top level with a trio of talented fillies in his care. They include A Lilac Rolla (Ire) (Harry Angel {Ire}), who gained her third success from as many starts when returning from eight months off to win the G3 Ballylinch Stud "Priory Belle" S. at Leopardstown last time, digging deep to...

Unbeaten entering Sunday's G3 Ballylinch Stud "Priory Belle" S. at Leopardstown, A Lilac Rolla (Ire) (Harry Angel {Ire}--Mejala {Ire}, by Red Ransom) carried on where she left off with a battling success from Kitty Rose (GB) (Invincible Army {Ire}). Last seen beating the subsequent G1 Prix Marcel Boussac heroine Opera Singer (Justify) at The Curragh in August, the Paddy Twomey-trained €40,000 Tatts Ireland September bargain was delivered to tackle Kitty Rose at the furlong pole and gave generously to Billy Lee to eke out a head success at odds of...

Sunday sees a swing in the momentum towards the more meaningful Flat action of 2024, with Leopardstown--which has to survive an early-morning inspection--and ParisLongchamp staging a host of Classic trials. Ballydoyle's wheels are really set in motion at the former venue, with several of their promising 3-year-olds ready to be unleashed in the card's trio of preps including the 10-furlong G3 P.W. McGrath Memorial Ballysax S. It is in that early Derby pointer that Rosegreen's G1 Criterium de Saint-Cloud third Illinois (Ire) (Galileo {Ire}) and impressive course maiden-winning TDN Rising...